Go Daddy Abandons IPO Plans

Citing turmoil in the Middle East, rising oil prices, and other market conditions, domain name registrar Go Daddy is withdrawing its $200 million initial public offering, the company announced on Tuesday.

The Scottsdale, Ariz.-based firm, which ranked No. 8 on the 2004 Inc. 500 list of the nation's fastest growing private companies and currently manages some 14.6 million website addresses, had registered to go public in July, according to papers filed with the Security Exchange Commission.

On Tuesday, however, Go Daddy founder and CEO Bob Parson told his 1,200 employees that the company would no longer be pursuing the IPO, despite having been approved by the SEC, until "better and more stable times arrive."

"Now just isn't the right time for us," Parsons said in a statement, citing the "war and escalating hostilities throughout the Middle East, skyrocketing oil prices, and technology stocks once again taking a beating on Wall Street."

In a lengthy post on his personal blog, Parsons likened the company's IPO approval to a "person being told his car is in perfect condition just before it's about to be driven into a wall."

"Controlling our own destiny is what has made this company great from the start," he added.

According to Parsons, Go Daddy just completed its strongest quarter since launching in 1997, with second-quarter revenue of more than $56 million and positive cash flow from operations of some $14 million.

In 2005, the company had $139.8 million in total revenue, an increase of 92% over the previous year, company figures show.